The National International Legal Assistance Center (LIRC) within LX handles international legal assistance requests. The Liaison Officers play an important role here. They represent the Dutch police abroad and connect the various corps. The Dutch police are represented in this way in 26 countries worldwide. These advanced posts are crucial for keeping the Netherlands safe.
Paul Stoppelenburg is a Liaison Officer in the USA. Whatever is happening in a country, our goal is always the same: fighting crime and keeping the Netherlands safe, he says. Every workday is different: one day I accompany a Dutch minister visiting, the next day I enable certain people here in the USA to be observed in connection with a Dutch investigation. This can be for various reasons, such as cybercrime, drug trafficking, or child abuse. Through the Liaison Officer, the country in question can also call upon the Dutch police.
International Assistance
Last year, the police were asked 59 times to provide international assistance. Especially in summer, there is high demand for supporting local police. Mostly in destinations where many Dutch people are, such as Spain and Croatia. But also at major events like the Formula 1 in Austria, the Tour de France in France, and other major sporting events, such as the Olympic Games, Dutch officers are deployed.
Besides Dutch deployment abroad, foreign police colleagues regularly come to the Netherlands to support us or learn from us. This year during the NATO summit, but also at other events.
Specialist Knowledge and Expertise
Domestically, LX supports regional units with specialist knowledge, expertise, and resources. For example, with eleven different disciplines of sniffer dogs, including dogs trained to search for explosives, data carriers, or drugs. These dogs were deployed 2446 times last year.
National Intelligence also produces images for the entire corps on safety themes such as Public Order, State Threat, and Guarding, Securing, and Protecting. The unit is also responsible for enforcing and investigating crime on highways, railways, and in the air. For example, the Flexible Intervention Team seized nearly a thousand kilos of hard drugs and 39 firearms from the roads in 2025.
Want to know more about LX and curious about all the figures? Below is the full infographic, where you can click through to more background information.